I have been trying to write books for several years now... but the problem is that I get a great synopsis, but once I start writing the book, i get caught up in thinking about how great it will be if i get it published, and I eventually get bored of writing the book... any suggestions to keep me on task? I think I figured out what was wrong, I was starting without fully establishing charactoer. Now I am writing with a stronger voice for the main girl, and it is going better. Thank you for all your help!

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This is the same battle every writer faces. You just keep writing, even when you get freaking bored and disgusted with your story. That's the only way to finish it. Every idea, no matter how awesome it seems at first, becomes stale and tiresome when we start to write. But keep writing, and I promise, the inspiration comes back again.

This will sound wierd but don't worry I'll explain. Get off task. Okay so when I right I'll be doing other things, so I'll right a couple lines then come on here, like I'm doing now, and I'll have music in the background from youtube so when it's over I have to leave the book to pic a new song, it keeps me more on task, don't know how but it does.

If you get bored with a book that you are writing, then that probobly means that you need a new topic, somthing that you want to know waht happens, like you are reading it and want to know what happens, you have to write it, staying up late, typing or writing till your hand cant move or your eyes are burning from looking at the screen. tif you get a story that good, then you will have no problem about writing it. hope this helps.

If you start writing and get bored with the story, give yourself a break. Come back to it in a few minutes, or even a few weeks. It'll still be there, and you can pick up where you left off in the story, and write until you get bored again. If you force yourself to write, it reflects in the story. The readers will get bored, and the story will get dry and seem forced. Give yourself a little time, and let it flow.

If you like write, then you should continue. I know sometimes what we write begin to sound bad-it happens a lot. Just keep writing, to create what you had originally pictured. Maybe, if you get bored easily of what you are writing, then, writing might not be for you-just maybe.

You can always take a break. In my most serious lack of imagination moments, I take my best friend and we spend a weekend together in a hotel by an amusement park or something. Something extreme that will keep me excited and having fun. That Monday, it seems a lot easier to tackle my book and I'm more engaged. Strange? Sure, but it seems to work. It's amazingly hard, I know. But I've finished a book recently, and hey, once I plowed through my procrastination, I was satisfied. One reason I find that I get off task is that I am tired with the scene that I'm stuck on; it's not all that important, yet still vital for the book as a whole, and I find my mind wandering to the prosperity of the potential huge, super-important scene, which gets me worked up over that. If you find that you do this, I suggest taking this into consideration: You don't have to write the book in chronological order. Many friends of mine (writers as well) bring up that they write the big scenes first and then string them together later. They do this because with the big parts out of the way, the little subplots and minor details will be easier, and they will be better crafted, for they won't be rushed in the eagerness to tackle the main conflict or whatnot. Going off of that, also remember this: once you finish the book, it's only the first draft. The editing process takes nearly as long as writing the book itself, and you'll never come out with what you started. So just write the book and don't get all worked up over making it sound brilliant just yet. Once you've got the main body of it, you just have to polish it later. So don't put yourself under performance pressure. When I lack the ability to write something, I disappear into a quiet corner, a reading nook perhaps, and turn on some relaxing music. By calming my mind, I can channel easier. Studies also show that working in natural sunlight helps the flowing of the thought process; even by a window can work. A change in scenery seems to help me as well. On some days, I take my laptop to one of the local Starbucks' (ha-ha, we have like five in the neighborhood; it's a never-ending joke) and find that I can think better and even different in a changed environment. I also take my laptop outside and sit in the grass and, sometimes when I'm bold, in a tree, and find that by a change of scenery, of energy, with fresh air and quiet and calm surroundings, my ability to write and the will to do so increases. Overcoming procrastination is important, too. Shut yourself out and promise to write at least this-many words or this-many chapters. Then when your done, go get a snack, a glass of water, and relax. I also find that unplugging my internet, turning off my phone, and locking my door works too - no distractions. Period. A famous author - I can't remember his name for the life of me - wrote only 300 words a day. It wasn't much, but it ensured that he would finish it and, as a result, he has published more than twenty novels. Stay in the moment and just write.

Try making a detailed outline of your prospective novel before you begin the actual writing. Plan its plot thoroughly; describe the characters in minute detail, enumerate the crises/conflicts which they will face; decide how those are to be resolved, what the climax will be and how the denouement will bring the story to its close. You might also divide the outline into actual chapters (with titles if you choose), even writing a paragraph or two describing each chapter's content. I think that if you have preplanned your story in that way, you will have a definite formula to follow as you write and will then not become bored as you will have your goal in sight while creating your potential novel. Clearly, if your aspiration is truly publication, you will need to finish your novel! Good luck!

You've had some good advice here. Just remember writers work in different ways. The same techniques won't work for everyone. Try some of the things that are suggested here like taking a break from your book, writing out of sequence so that you get the main scenes down, changing the place you work. One of those might help. One answer suggested a completely detailed outline. That might work too although it wouldn't work for me. Tony Hillerman, the mystery novelist, told me that that's the way he did his first novel. Then when the outline was finished, he started writing the book and when that was done it wasn't anything like the outline so he never outlined again. You have to find the things that work for you. It could be that it's the synopsis that's holding you back. Maybe those characters don't want to do what you have outlined for them to do. If that's the case then you have to either let them go the way that seems right as you're writing or go back and rewrite the character's own previous lives so that they would be the people who would do what you want. I find it better for me to let the story run without too much planning. I create characters that I like, give them a problem to solve and start writing. The first draft is often a mess but I don't worry about that until it's finished. Remember, the inspiration is in the draft but the art is in the revision. Keep trying, it's the perseverance that matters. Let us know how it goes.

Okay, I'll say this first: There are times that you have been working on a story for way too long and the interest has died and you really do need a break. BUT... most of the time the real thing about writing is just making yourself do it. You will never ever ever finish a book if you only write when you are inspired of interested. Remember that there is always the rewriting stage to get rid of any goofs that come from just putting words down on the pages. So for now, go on a jog around your neighborhood, take a 15 minute refresher and then sit down and write. If you just start rambling sentences than GREAT! at least there is words on the page. If you quit everything you start how will you ever know you can finish? It's okay to be excited about getting the book published, just use that excitement as your motivation to finish the project. Good luck and publish soon!

The problem you have cited is not uncommon. Many authors suffer from this problem. The solution lies in tackling the task systematically. Once you have your synopsis ready, break down the proposed book into chapters. Write down the contents of each chapter in two sentences. Now you know how many chapters there would be in your book and what exactly each chapter would contain. Once you have done that, set a day or two for each chapter and stick to it. If the timeframe for completing all the chapters of your book is one month, you will complete it within 45 to 50 days as you would have to revise and rewrite some portions. I you draw up a schedule and stick to it, I think it will work out.

You have to decide about writing your story and dedicate time for this. Writing and getting your book published are very serious stuff. Work on developing and enhancing the elements of your story: the plot, the theme, the characterization, the conflict. I hope you find this helpful

God you sound just like me lol. It's almost scary. I do the same thing. I think what OUR problem is, is that we don't establish the character enough (like you said) or the story line. If you write out a step by step outline then you won't get writer's block or start wandering off track. Also, try to write every day. Even if you can get down one sentence you're still working towards getting the work done. One of my problems is that I post my book for critic and it kind of gets me bummed when I hear it's not as good as I thought it was. Even though it's constructive critism (that I asked for) I still get kind of down about it. If the same thing happens to you try to remember that you asked for advice and they are just providing it. If you want to post your story for advice here's a link: www.absolutewrite.com I hope that I helped and maybe me providing advice to someone else will help me to stay on track myself. Good luck :) P.S. - I also want to say that what the second person said is some what true. If you get off task then you will find inspiration to keep writing. Sometimes you have to step away from the project before you can add to it. :)

also listening to some music which goes along the story line can help!

I have the same problem, the way that i figured out to keep my mind off of other things is that i sit down and think of the Story then i begin to write it. the first time through ignore grammar, spelling and all that other stuff, just let it all out. then u can go back and check it.

Try this... Stop working off of a synopsis and just get a general idea what the book is about. Work on character development! Then put them together in a situation you just dreamed up that goes along with your general idea and watch what they do. When characters become people to us, we can let them have at the scene and watch as it unfolds before us. We just get the privilege of watching it before anyone else does. That's what "character driven" books are about. Incidentally, publishers want character-driven books more that plot-driven which is what you were first doing. You said now that you've established your character, things are going better. That's because you are now writing a character-driven work. Also, remember the first draft is going to be CRAP and you'll rip most of it out and rework it, so don't worry about that. It will become a better work each time you revise. Blessings!

Don't worry. This is pretty common for writers of all stages. From beginners to advanced published authors, this happens. All of the advice is great. One thing is constant, get off task. Take a break and then come back and write some more. If you need to take 100 breaks, do so. In the end, you'll have your finished piece. Haven't you heard stories of famous authors that say it took years to finish a single manuscript. This is part of the reason. Just keep at it, even if it's little by little. You'll get there.